Dev tools · alternatives · 2026

24 alternatives to Novus

A blazingly fast and futuristic package manager for windows.

Below are 24 products that do a similar job, ranked by how close each is in meaning and then by launch-day votes. Novus launched in 2021; newer entries below may have overtaken it.

1. 1
   Glasskube▲260

   The next generation package manager for Kubernetes

   2024 · github.com · its alternatives →

2. 2AP
   A package manager for AI plugins▲82

   AI plugin package manager

   2023 · openpm.ai · its alternatives →

3. 3
   fman▲138

   A modern file manager for power users

   2017 · fman.io · its alternatives →

4. 4
   CoreOS, a Linux distro for containers▲417

   An application innovation platform delivering a comprehensive experience with tools to empower organizations to modernize and build new applications, accelerate AI adoption, and fuel growth.

   2013 · coreos.com · its alternatives →

5. 5
   Bor – Open-source policy management for Linux desktops▲197

   Hi HN! I've been working on Bor, an open-source system for centralized Linux desktop management. Bor consists of a lightweight Go agent and a central server. Policies are streamed to clients over mTLS/gRPC in real time—no polling—and currently support Firefox, Chrome, KDE, dconf, polkit and package management, with more coming. Version 0.8 introduces several new policy types - Thunderbird, Microsoft Edge for Business and FirewallD zones, along with a number of improvements and fixes. I'd love feedback on the architecture, policy model, and whether this is something you'd consider for…

   Aug 2026 · getbor.dev · its alternatives →

6. 6LA
   Lux – A luxurious package manager for Lua▲268

   2025 · mrcjkb.dev · its alternatives →

7. 7
   Sigma File Manager▲152

   Free, open-source, cross-platform, modern file manager app

   Jun 2026 · github.com · its alternatives →

8. 8
   An experimental, modern package manager for operating systems▲13

   an experimental package manager for operating systems - lodosgroup/lpm

   2023 · github.com · its alternatives →

9. 9
   CtrlOps▲244

   Deploy, Debug & Manage Linux Servers with AI.

   May 2026 · ctrlops.io · its alternatives →

10. 10DA
    Duo – a next-generation package manager for the front end▲168

    2014 · duojs.org · its alternatives →

11. 11
    Ultra▲95

    Fast JavaScript package manager

    2022 · its alternatives →

12. 12
    ied – an alternative package manager for Node▲86

    :package: Like npm, but faster - an alternative package manager for Node - alexanderGugel/ied

    2015 · github.com · its alternatives →

13. 13
    WAPM▲126

    The WebAssembly Package Manager

    2019 · wasmer.io · its alternatives →

14. 14
    Sysdig, a tool for Linux system exploration▲171

    Linux system exploration and troubleshooting tool with first class support for containers - draios/sysdig

    2014 · github.com · its alternatives →

15. 15
    SSOReady▲144

    Open source developer tools for enterprise single sign-on

    2024 · github.com · its alternatives →

16. 16
    GoboLinux 016 featuring Runner, a filesystem virtualization tool▲80

    2016 · gobolinux.org · its alternatives →

17. 17
    distri: a Linux distribution to research fast package management▲92

    Over the last year or so I have worked on a research linux distribution in my spare time. It’s not a distribution for researchers (like Scientific Linux), but my personal playground project to research linux distribution development, i.e. try out fresh ideas.

    2019 · michael.stapelberg.ch · its alternatives →

18. 18
    The reverse package manager▲47

    2011 · github.com · its alternatives →

19. 19
    The Missing Open Source Package Manager for Kubernetes Beyond Helm▲20

    Hi, we are a small team from Vienna and today released our first version of a Package Manager similar to apt, Homebrew, or Chocolatey, but specifically tailored for Kubernetes environments and cloud-native software. Originally, we wanted to contribute to the Kubernetes ecosystem with a different idea; however, after talking to the community, we uncovered that package management is an even bigger problem at the moment. We are now looking for as much feedback as possible, so we would really appreciate it if you could check it out and let us know what you think! Thanks!

    2024 · github.com · its alternatives →

20. 20AA
    Autumn – A macOS window manager for (Type|Java)Script hackers▲75

    2018 · sephware.com · its alternatives →

21. 21XA
    Xrepo – A modern cross-platform C/C++ package manager▲55

    Naga77 menjadi pilihan gaming modern karena sistem andal hadirkan visual menarik sehingga aktivitas bermain terasa lebih bernilai konsisten sepanjang waktu Naga77.

    2020 · tboox.org · its alternatives →

22. 22
    Sx – an open-source package manager for AI skills, MCPs, and commands▲50

    Claude Code is amazing for individuals but terrible for teams. I spent the last six months building my perfect mix of MCP servers, subagents, commands and skills. Claude Code writes 100% of the code now, but sharing this with my team? Painful. 1. Blog posts and workshops don't work (and don't scale) 2. Committing tools to N repos means N PRs. A tool changes? N more PRs. 3. Same tools, different files or folders for each AI assistant; not everyone uses Claude Code It is like 1999 all over again; FTPing files up to prod and versioning with ".bak" suffixes. So I built sx. It is your team's…

    May 2026 · github.com · its alternatives →

23. 23
    Package Mate▲70

    Master your macOS dev environment from the terminal

    Apr 2026 · package-mate.com · its alternatives →

24. 24
    Jetpack, a FreeBSD Jail/ZFS-based container runtime▲96

    **PROTOTYPE** FreeBSD Jail/ZFS based implementation of the Application Container Specification - 3ofcoins/jetpack

    2015 · github.com · its alternatives →

Ranked by how close each launch is in meaning, then by votes. Prices were read from each product’s own site when checked and can change. Refine with your own description →